Tree kingfisher

Tree kingfisher
The tree kingfishers, also called wood kingfishers or Halcyoninae, are the most numerous of the three subfamilies of birds in the kingfisher family, with around 70 species divided into 12 genera, including several species of kookaburras. The subfamily appears to have arisen in Indochina and Maritime Southeast Asia and then spread to many areas around the world. Tree kingfishers are widespread through Asia and Australasia, but also appear in Africa and the islands of the Pacific and Indian Oceans, using a range of habitats from tropical rainforest to open woodlands.
The tree kingfishers are short-tailed, large-headed, compact birds with long, pointed bills. Like other Coraciiformes, they are brightly coloured. Most are monogamous and territorial, nesting in holes in trees or termite nests. Both parents incubate the eggs and feed the chicks. Although some tree kingfishers frequent wetlands, none are specialist fish-eaters. Most species dive onto prey from a perch, mainly taking slow-moving invertebrates or small vertebrates.
Taxonomy
The tree kingfisher subfamily is often given the name Daceloninae introduce by Charles Lucien Bonaparte in 1841, but the name Halcyoninae introduced by Nicholas Aylward Vigors in 1825 is earlier and has priority.
The subfamily Halcyoninae is one of three subfamilies in the kingfisher family Alcedinidae. The other two are Alcedininae and Cerylinae. The subfamily contains around 70 species divided into 12 genera. A molecular study published in 2017 found that the genera Dacelo and Actenoides as currently defined are paraphyletic. The shovel-billed kookaburra in the monotypic genus Clytoceyx sits within Dacelo and the glittering kingfisher in the monotypic genus Caridonax lies within Actenoides.
List of species
Genus Actenoides
Green-backed kingfisher, Actenoides monachus
Scaly-breasted kingfisher, Actenoides princeps
Moustached kingfisher, Actenoides bougainvillei
Spotted wood kingfisher, Actenoides lindsayi
Hombron's kingfisher, Actenoides hombroni
Rufous-collared kingfisher, Actenoides concretus
Genus Melidora
Hook-billed kingfisher, Melidora macrorrhina
Genus Lacedo
Banded kingfisher, Lacedo pulchella
Genus Tanysiptera, paradise kingfishers
Common paradise kingfisher, Tanysiptera galatea
Kofiau paradise kingfisher, Tanysiptera ellioti
Biak paradise kingfisher, Tanysiptera riedelii
Numfor paradise kingfisher, Tanysiptera carolinae
Little paradise kingfisher, Tanysiptera hydrocharis
Buff-breasted paradise kingfisher, Tanysiptera sylvia
Black-capped paradise kingfisher, Tanysiptera nigriceps
Red-breasted paradise kingfisher, Tanysiptera nympha
Brown-headed paradise kingfisher, Tanysiptera danae
Genus Cittura
Sulawesi lilac kingfisher, Cittura cyanotis
Sangihe lilac kingfisher, Cittura sanghirensis
Genus Clytoceyx
Shovel-billed kookaburra, Clytoceyx rex
Genus Dacelo, kookaburras
Laughing kookaburra, Dacelo novaeguineae
Blue-winged kookaburra, Dacelo leachii
Spangled kookaburra, Dacelo tyro
Rufous-bellied kookaburra, Dacelo gaudichaud
Genus Caridonax
Glittering kingfisher, Caridonax fulgidus
Genus Pelargopsis
Stork-billed kingfisher, Pelargopsis capensis
Great-billed kingfisher, Pelargopsis melanorhyncha
Brown-winged kingfisher, Pelargopsis amauroptera
Genus Halcyon
Ruddy kingfisher, Halcyon coromanda
White-throated kingfisher, Halcyon smyrnensis
Brown-breasted kingfisher, Halcyon gularis
Javan kingfisher, Halcyon cyanoventris
Chocolate-backed kingfisher, Halcyon badia
Black-capped kingfisher, Halcyon pileata
Grey-headed kingfisher, Halcyon leucocephala
Brown-hooded kingfisher, Halcyon albiventris
Striped kingfisher, Halcyon chelicuti
Blue-breasted kingfisher, Halcyon malimbica
Woodland kingfisher, Halcyon senegalensis
Mangrove kingfisher, Halcyon senegaloides
Genus Todirhamphus
Blue-black kingfisher, Todirhamphus nigrocyaneus
Winchell's kingfisher, Todirhamphus winchelli
Blue-and-white kingfisher, Todirhamphus diops
Lazuli kingfisher, Todirhamphus lazuli
Forest kingfisher, Todirhamphus macleayii
White-mantled kingfisher, Todirhamphus albonotatus
Ultramarine kingfisher, Todirhamphus leucopygius
Vanuatu kingfisher, Todirhamphus farquhari
Sombre kingfisher, Todirhamphus funebris
Collared kingfisher, Todirhamphus chloris
Torresian kingfisher, Todirhamphus sordidus
Islet kingfisher, Todirhamphus colonus
Mariana kingfisher, Todirhamphus albicilla
Melanesian kingfisher, Todirhamphus tristrami
Pacific kingfisher, Todirhamphus sacer
Talaud kingfisher, Todirhamphus enigma
Guam kingfisher, Todirhamphus cinnamominus
Rusty-capped kingfisher, Todiramphus pelewensis
Pohnpei kingfisher, Todiramphus reichenbachii
Beach kingfisher, Todirhamphus saurophaga
Sacred kingfisher, Todirhamphus sanctus
Flat-billed kingfisher, Todirhamphus recurvirostris
Cinnamon-banded kingfisher, Todirhamphus australasia
Chattering kingfisher, Todirhamphus tuta
Mewing kingfisher, Todirhamphus ruficollaris
Society kingfisher, Todirhamphus veneratus
Mangareva kingfisher, Todirhamphus gambieri
Niau kingfisher, Todirhamphus gertrudae
Marquesan kingfisher, Todirhamphus godeffroyi
Red-backed kingfisher, Todirhamphus pyrrhopygia
Genus Syma
Yellow-billed kingfisher, Syma torotoro
Mountain kingfisher, Syma megarhyncha
Description
Kingfishers are short-tailed, large-headed, compact birds with long, pointed bills. Like other Coraciiformes, they are brightly coloured. The tree kingfishers are medium to large species, mostly typical kingfishers in appearance, although shovel-billed kookaburra has a huge conical bill, and the Tanysiptera paradise kingfishers have long tail streamers. Some species, notably the kookaburras, show sexual dimorphism.
Distribution and habitat
Most tree kingfishers are found in the warm climates of Africa, southern and southeast Asia, and Australasia. No members of this family are found in the Americas. The origin of the family is thought to have been in tropical Australasia, which still has the most species.
Tree kingfishers use a range of habitats from tropical rainforest to open woodlands and thornbush country. Many are not closely tied to water, and can be found in arid areas of Australia and Africa.
Breeding
Tree kingfishers are monogamous and territorial, although some species, including three kookaburras, have a cooperative breeding system involving young from earlier broods. The nest is a tree hole, either natural, and old woodpecker nest, or excavated in soft or rotting wood by the kingfishers. Several species dig holes in termite nests. No nest material is added, although litter may build up over the years. Both parents incubate the eggs and feed the chicks. Egg laying is staggered at one-day intervals so that if food is short, only the older, larger nestlings get fed. The chicks are naked, blind, and helpless when they hatch, and stand on their heels, unlike adults.
Feeding
Although some tree kingfishers, such as the black-capped kingfisher, frequent wetlands, none are specialist fishers. Most species are watch-and-wait hunters which dive onto prey from a perch, mainly taking slow-moving invertebrates or small vertebrates. The shovel-billed kookaburra digs through leaf litter for worms and other prey, and the Vanuatu kingfisher feeds exclusively on insects and spiders. Several other western Pacific species are also mainly insectivorous and flycatch for prey. As with the other kingfisher families, insectivorous species tend to have flattened, red bills to assist in the capture of insects.
References
Sources
External links
Kingfisher videos on the Internet Bird Collection
Kingfishers
th:Tree kingfisher